Category Archives: Press Release

60 years ago Lord Wolfenden published a pivotal report that recommended same-sex love be partially decriminalised. We are marking this anniversary with a project to explore what has happened since that time. We need your recollections – good, bad or indifferent from any time during the last 60 years.

You may have lived through the time when being gay was enough to land you in prison. You may only just be coming to terms with your sexuality or gender. Do you remember Section 28? Were you a teacher or a local government employee between 1988 and 2003? Did Section 28 or its repeal change the way you worked? Were you a student during this time? Have you ever served in the armed forces and identify as gay, bi or lesbian? Did you serve before the change in policy in 2003? Is there homophobia, biphobia or transphobia in your workplace or family?

Whatever you have to share, be it a few words or a few pages, we would love to hear from you. We would like to have personal stories read by actors for a short documentary. We are also interested in any items like letters, pictures or newspaper clippings that you are happy for us to photograph and use.

We will need an approximate date/year for your memory and ideally a rough location, particularly if it is from outside the UK. All contributions will be treated as confidential unless you expressly state you are happy for us to include your name.

Support U is proud to announce that it has been awarded a grant from Berkshire Community Foundation in order to help keep vital youth support services open to the LGBT+ community.

The grant was awarded by Berkshire Community Foundation, through a donation by the David Brownlow Charitable Foundation.

The grant totaling £14,756 is a significant contribution to the rent and operating costs of the building, which plays a key part in the on-going delivery of keeping our safe and secure space open for the youth provision and associated services.

Andrew Stonehill-Brooks, Chairman for Support U, said “We’re so pleased to have been awarded this grant by Berkshire Community Foundation, it’s these kind contributions that prevents our vital support services from closing. This grant will allow Support U to keep the doors to youth, support and counselling services open to the public.”

Last year Support U saw a increase of 1,500 cases, taking 2016’s total cases in excess of 5,000.

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Notes to Editors

About Berkshire Community Foundation
We raise funds for, and make grants to, local charities and community groups addressing identified need across Berkshire.
We use our local knowledge to connect supporters to the groups and communities they want to help, making sure their donations are effective and bring the greatest benefit to those most in need.

Last year we gave over £900,000 to a wide range of local projects, addressing issues such as child poverty, unemployment, social isolation and homelessness.

About Support U LtdSupport U is the largest LGBT+ support charity in the South East, responding to over 5,000 queries in 2016. We’re here to help support and educate individuals, schools and businesses with any LGBT+ related concerns. Visit our website at www.supportu.org.uk, on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn for our updates.

2017 marks both the 60th anniversary of the publication of the Wolfenden Report and 120 years since Oscar Wilde was released from Reading Gaol.

Thanks to National Lottery players, three groups have received funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for projects to reclaim, record and celebrate the previously unexplored stories of LGBT+ heritage in Reading, Worthing and Hampshire. The projects aim to support and educate young people, particularly in LGBT+ communities, and give them them a better sense of their heritage.

Stuart McLeod, Head of HLF South East England, said: “It’s fantastic that we can support these three great projects to shine a light on parts of history that have traditionally been overlooked. Thanks to National Lottery players, these fascinating stories will be rightfully brought to the fore and preserved for future generations – an important record of the challenges and achievements of the LGBT+ community.”

The Wolfenden Report
Support U has been awarded £77,200 for a project researching and sharing the history of the 1957 Wolfenden Report on the 60th anniversary of its publication.

Chaired by Lord John Wolfenden, then vice-Chancellor of the University of Reading, ‘The Report of the Committee on Homosexual Offences and Prostitution’ changed the course of LGBT+ rights in Britain and led to the decriminalisation of homosexuality ten years later in 1967.

Thanks to National Lottery players, this project will explore the events and effects of this significant moment in local and national LGBT+ heritage. Working in partnership with the University of Reading and Reading Museum, Support U’s youth group will create a documentary about the report, examining local archives and interviewing figures relating to the report.

Their research will form the basis of an exhibition and events programme with the University of Reading, as well as lesson plans, educational materials and teachers training sessions for schools in the Thames Valley.

Lynden Kingston, Chief Executive at Support U, said “We’re so pleased to be working with the Heritage Lottery Fund on this project, following the great success in our first LGBT+ project, Hidden Voices. There are plenty of opportunities to get involved, so please get in touch to be part of one of the most fascinating LGBT+ activities the area has seen in a long time.”

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Notes to editors

LGBT: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender.

About the Heritage Lottery FundThanks to National Lottery players, we invest money to help people across the UK explore, enjoy and protect the heritage they care about – from the archaeology under our feet to the historic parks and buildings we love, from precious memories and collections to rare wildlife. www.hlf.org.uk. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and use #HLFsupported.

About Support U LtdSupport U is the largest LGBT+ support charity in the South East, responding to over 5,000 queries in 2016. We’re here to help support and educate individuals, schools and businesses with any LGBT+ related concerns. Visit our website at www.supportu.org.uk, on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn for our updates.